Compressed-air pump.



W. E. STUART.

COMPRESSED AIR PUMP.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 5,1911.

Patented J an. 9, 1912.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

' I I 21 van tar,

Wine-swap .79 g

W. E. STUART. COMPRESSED AIR PUMP.

APPLIQATION FILED JAN. 5, 1911.

Patented Jan. 9, 1912 2 SHEETS-SHEET Z.

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'3 at the top of WILLIAM E. strunnr, or SAN FRANCISCO, camronnm'.

COMPRESSED-AIR PUMP.

To all whom it my comem:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM E. STUART, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Compressed-Air Pumps, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to improvements 1n pumps operated by means of compressed air, the same being especially adapted fordeep well pumps.

The object of my invention is to provide a pump of this character which will be efficient and economical in its action, and produce a regular flow of the liquid operated upon as oil or water, and which, can be used as either a pressure or a suction pump, thereby enabling a large number of wells to be pumped from-the central station.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1" is a side view of my mventionapplied to a deep well; Fig. 2 is an enlarged; vertical section, partly in side elevation, of a portion of the well showing in section the compressed air ports and the valve for controlling the same; Fig. 3 is a similar view of the lower portion of the well showing in section the lowermost air ports Fig. 4 is a vertical section of the upper portion of my improved pump, the valve-controlling device being shown in side view; Fi 5 is an enlarged vertical section of said valve-controlling device.

Referring to the drawings, 1 indicates a compressed: air su ply pipe, which enters the side of a eylin er 2. Through the head said cylindercan slide a tube 4. Said tube is attached at its upper end to a hollow piston 5, which slides within a main cylinder 6, ported by standards 7 upon the top of a receptacle 8 supported by a suitable concrete structure 9 upon the surface of the ground around the well 10, in WhlCh receptacle 8 the liquid, such as oil, is received, and from which it flows by a discharge pipe 11. The compressed air from the pi e l enters the lower open end of said tu e 4 and passes upward therein, dischar 'ng, first by a dpassage 13, the opening cm which is a uste by a pin valve 14, and then by a assage 15 into the space 16 within. the ho low piston 5. In said hollow piston is secured a regulating cylinder 17,

Specification of Letters Iatent. Application filed January 5, 1911. Serial No. 600,926.

said cylinder 6 being supinto the ends of which compressed air enters by two passages 18, 19, so that a piston 20 therein is balanced. Said piston 20 is formed with upper and lower heads 21, 22,

spacedfrom each other, the body of the piston being reduced in diameter, and therefore being spaced from the cylinder 17 to form a chamber 23. Intosaid chamber 23 the compressed air enters by a passage 24' through the cylinder 17, and from said chamber it may escape either by a passage 25 into the lower portionof the main cylinder 6,, or by a passage 26 into the upper portion thereof, said latter passage belng adjusted by a pin valve 28. It cannot, how- Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

everfescape 1nto said upper passage from said chamber 23 while said chamber 23 is in communication with the passage 24, but only when said chamber is only in communication with the lower passage 25. In the position shown in the drawing compressed air passes 'by the passage 24 into the chamber 23 and by the passage 25 into the .lower portion of the cylinder 6 and the passage 26 is closed by the upper piston "head 21. The

upper end of the cylinder 6 is open to the atmosphere by the passage 30. Therefore the compressed air pressesv the main piston 5 upwardly, until an arm of a lever 31, pivotally attached to a stem 32 of the said piston, extending through the head 33 of the cylinder 17 impinges against a screw stop 34. When this occurs, the long arm of said lever 31 is moved upwardly, shifting the piston 20 to its upper position, and closing the passage 24 by the lower pistonhead 22, while at the same time causing the two passages 25v and 26 to communicate. with each other through the chamber 23. Gompressed air then flows from the lower por-. tion of said main 0 linder 6 to the upper portion thereof an thence to the atmosphere by vthe passage 30. The main piston 5 thereupon owin to the weight of the parts depending there cm, as hereinafter described, descends on an air cushion controlled by the pin valve 28. 1 g The downward movement of the piston is automatically reversed by a lever 41, the operation of which is simi lar to that of the lever 31. p Y i 'Su ported upon 'a coiledspring 35 surroun mg said tube 4 and resting upon a lower collar 36 on said tube, is a yoke 37, from which depends a tube.

as, open atthe no then" divided into sections 42, said sections havother, the lower -end of each i screwed, as shownat 50, to the u ing collars 43 thereon some of which are provided with suitable arms 44 maintaining it centrally within the tube 40. Said sections are movable vertically relative to each section being screwed, as shown at 45, to a piston valve 46, which slides within a valve casing 47, pper end of the next lower section 42,. sald valve casing being secured to the upper portion of the next lower section by a set screw 94. Gaskets 51 are received within recesses of the valve casings to the valves 46 thereof.

The lowermost section 42 is rotatably connected to a socket '54, by "being screwed therein, as shown at 53, which socket 54 in turn is screwed to a sleeve '55, and has formed integral therewith at its lower end a stem 56, which rests in a seat '57 supported by arms 58 from a sleeve 60 of the pump casing 40. Said stem 56 is provided with a lug 61 which engages a notch 62 of the seat to prevent the stem turning. In this position a lug 63 extending from the lower end of each section engages a recess 64 in the sleeve connected to, the section ne'xt below it and compels the two sections, and in con sequence all of said sections, to rotate together. W'hen the sections move vertically with reference to one another, as hereinafter described, said lug also moves vertically in the groove or recess 64 formed therefor in the corresponding sleeve.

On'first inserting the pump into a well, the lowermost section is screwed down within the socket 54 sufiiciently far to close 0 enings 70 through said socket, and each 0? the'sections above the lowermost section assumes its lowermost position with regard to the section next below it, the piston valve 46 of each sectionresting upon the lower gasket 51 in the top of the next lowermost section. The result is that compressed air 'cannot then escape from within the tube lowermost, said openings 71 be' sections by the openings 70,or by openings 71 in the bottom of eac "section above the g at that time closed by being below the top' of the next section below it; Thefirst operation, therefore, is to open the apertiires 7 O, which is done by screwing backward the whole of the tube sections, and thereby raising the lowermost tube section with reference to the socket 54, until the bottom of said tube sec tion ascends above theopenings as shown I in Fig. 3. When the bottom of the'lowerthe space between provide a tight fit to "into upper apertures 80 obliquely upward. During succession into the pump chamber. the whole of this time the compressed'air to be .discharged most section has been thus screwed above the apertures 70, compressed air, passed from the pipe 1 into the open top of the uppermost tube section, passes by said apertures 70 into a chamber 72 formed in the sleeve 55 and escapes from said chamber 72' ascent ofthe uppermost tube section, causing the piston valve 46 :of said uppermost section to be raised from its seat and compressed air to escape by the apertures 71 to said valve and seat, then by channels 75 tothe space above the piston 46 and below the upper gasket 51, and then .by channels 76 to apertures 77 extending into the discharge chamber of the pump obliquely upward, and also by channels 78 also extending this time com: pressed air is being. discharged into the jpump casing from the uppermost series of apertures as well as from the lowermost.

When the piston valve 46 arrives at its uppermost position, the compressed air passages past said valve are closed, but immediately thereafter, byreason of the fact that the main piston 5 continues to ascend,

the compressed air can now pass in like ,manner through the apertures 71 ofthe next lower section, 45 thereof, and out same manner as before described. In this. manner compressed air can be caused to around the piston valve into the chamber in the pass from the bottom of each section'in During 1s passing into the bottom of said chamber by the ports 70, 72, 73. By this means the liquid is caused to ascend in said pump and into the receptacle 8 from which it is conducted by the pipeL-ll. Liquid to supply its place flows upward between the arms 58 which suppnrtthe'seat 57. When the piston 5 arrives at its uppermost position, the compressed air no longer continues to raise said iston, but, as already described, said piston alls by the weight'of the parts suspended therefrom, and'in-successlon, the passa air are closed, eac series of passages? 1 being opened at the same time that the series es 71 for thecompressed ofpassages 71 below it-is closed. In this manner said series are in succession opened for the passage" of compressed air therethrough. \Vhen the main piston 5 arrives at the bottom of the cylinder 6, .the valve46 is thenopened and the process is repeated, as

before explained. V

The spring 35 is interposed in order to avoid any'breakageof the :parts owing to imperfectadjustment between the length of the path of the main piston and the total of the lengths of the several paths of the plungers.

95 indicates a spreader for diverting the .oil or other liquid being pumped and prewhen desirable to do so.

'The oblique form of the ports for the escape of the compressed air causes said compressed air to be directed upwardly and outwardly in the pump so as to come in contact with the pump casing. A serious disadvantage in regard to pumping by compressed air is that the compressed air tends to travel faster at the center of the column of fluid within the pump casing, or along a the course of least resistance, since the oil or water through friction tends to cling to the surface ofthe pump casing; therefore the compressed air penetrates the column of oil or Water and allows the fluid so penetrated to fall back upon the next following body of fluid greatly decreasing the efiiciency of the pump. By directing the com- I pressed air outwardly at suitable intervals, the column of oilor water is better separated into distinct bodies or portions and maintained so separate, and the air cannot escape through the center.

The utility of admitting the air into the pump tube through the openings 71 intermittently, commencing on the upward stroke with the -top valve and on the downward stroke with the lower valve is that thereby a reduction is efiected in the specific gravity of the column of fluid on the inside of pump tube commencing at the top of column instead of at the base. Said reduction of specific gravity is brought about through the arrangement of valves on the air tube which supplies air to the main lower valve. These valves are so constructed and arranged that they, on the upward stroke of 'air tube, allow air to pass into the pump tube at different intervals intermittently, commencing at the top of the column of fluid. The advantage of this arrangement is that, instead of the air that passes out of the main lower valve having to work against a pressure generated by an unbroken column of fluid, it, works against-a column already made lighter, and put into an upward motion through the displacement of flui'd in pump tube at intervals with air commencing at the top. This air is also caused (owing to the shape of the openings 77 and 80 through which itis forced) to give the fluidan upward impulse.

' Iclaim:

1. A compressed air pump comprising a pump tube, a tube in said pump tube, for compressed air, a series of valve-controlled devices carried by said latter tube at intervals therealong for discharging compressed air into said pump tube, and means for automatically opening said devices in. succession while maintaining the others closed, substantially as described.

2. A compressed air pump comprising a pump tube, a tube in said pump tube, for compressed air, a series of valve-controlled devices carried by said latter tube at intervals therealong for discharging compressed air into said pump tube, a device for discharging compressed air from the bottom of said compressed air tube into said pump tube, and means for automatically opening said devices in succession while maintaining the other closed, substantially as 'described.

.3. A compressed air pump comprising a pump tube, a tube in said pump tube for compressed air, a series of valve-controlled devices carried by said latter tube at intervals therealong for discharging compressed air into said pump tube, and means operated by the pressure of compressed air for automatically opening each of said devices in succession, and closing the last device which has been opened, substantially as described.

4. A compressed air pump comprising a pump tube, a tube in said pump tube for compressed air, a series of valve-controlled devices carried by said latter tube at intervals therealong for discharging compressed air into said pump tube, and means operated by the pressure of compressed air for automatically opening each of said devices in succession, in an upwardly and downwardly direction alternately, and closing the last device which has been opened, substan tially as described.

5. A compressed air pump comprising a pump tube, a tube in said pump tube for compressed air, a series of valve-controlled devices carried by said latter tube at intervals therealong for discharging compressed air into said pump tube, 'a device for discharging compressed air from the bottom of said compressed air tube into said pump tube, and means operated by the pressure of compressed air for automatically opening each of said; devices in succession and closing the last device which has been opened, substantially as described.

6. A compressed air pump comprising a charging compressed air from the bottom 'of each tube section,

of said compressed air tube into said pump tube, and means operated by the pressure of compressed air for automatically opening each of said devices in succession in an upwardly and downwardly direction alternately, and closing the last device which has been opened, substantially as' described.

7. A compressed air pump comprising a pump tube, a tube in said pump tube for compressed air, a series of valve-controlled devicescarried by said latter tube at intervals therealong for discharging compressed air obliquely upward into said pump tube, and means operated by the pressure of compressed air for automatically opening each, of said devices in succession and closing the last device which has been opened, substantially as described.

8. In a compressed air pump, a pump casing, a compressed air conduit arranged centrally in said pump casing, comprising tube sections, means for supporting the lowermost section uponthe valve casing, a piston valve secured on the lower end of each tube section, a sleeve secured upon the upper end a conduit in eachsleeve 4 of each tube section,

past the valve, and means for automatically reciprocating the conduit through a distance substantially equal to the sum of the paths of the valves, substantially as described.

9. In a compressed air pump, a pump cas.

valve secured on the lower end of each tube section, a sleeve secured upon the upper end a conduit in each sleeve past-the valve, means for automatically reciprocating the conduit through a distance substantially equal to the sum of the paths of the valve, and a spring interposed between said means and said conduit, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

" WILLIAM STUART.

Witnesses:

FRANCIS M. WRIGHT, V t

D. B. RICHARDS. 7 

